Justin and I do pushups in almost every single class. Love them or hate them, you can't deny how good the ol' push up really is. Why you ask??
Well... as you lower your body to the floor and that familiar "burn" starts to kick in, I bet the last thing you're thinking is "wow! This is activating every single muscle in my body!" However, this is probably one of the top benefits of the push up. Major muscle groups like the biceps, triceps, stomach muscles, anterior deltoids and the lower body are activated to support your body while stabilizing your movements.
Classified a compound exercise (meaning multiple muscles are called upon), the most underrated benefits of doing pushups is the stretch it provides your biceps and back. As you lower yourself down, your back muscles are effectively stretched and when you push yourself back up, your arms get a full stretch as they extend.
And going back to it being a compound exercise, when you simultaneously engage large muscle groups, your heart must work harder to deliver oxygen-rich blood to muscle tissue. Ultimately, this activity results in an effective cardiovascular exercise which supports heart health and promotes the reduction of stored body fat. Not to mention: the pushup gives you a full body workout, helps create balance, stability and muscle density, you can do them anywhere, they burn calories, easy to modify, and the best part is... they are free!!
I could boggle your mind some more but I think you get the jist of why you need to do your pushups!!
J & I will do around 150 per day... how many do YOU do?!?